good morning. four more years. >> health care reform is no longer -- it is the law of the land. united states conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden. the majority of those who died today were children, beautiful little kids between the ages of 5 and 10 years old. we know in our hearts that for the united states of america, the best is yet to come. president barack obama, the 44th president, takes the oath of office to serve a second term. and we're here for all the

tradition, pageantry and tradition "today," monday, january 21st, 2013. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is a special edition of "today," the second inauguration of barack obama, with matt lauer and savannah guthrie live from washington, d.c. and good monday morning to you, everyone. welcome to a special edition of "today" on a monday morning from capitol hill. as you look at the white house there, now the capitol. i'm matt lauer alongside savannah guthrie, natalie morales and mr. al roker. >> beautiful sunrise in washington. no matter who you voted for, this is an historic day for the country. little cold in the capital, but all along the country, people are starting to gather along the parade route this morning. >> the president and his family

have a very full day ahead. so do we here at nbc news. 8:45 eastern starts off, the celebration does. the obamas and bidens will attend a private prayer service at st. john's church. to there back to the white house for 10:00 coffee with congressional leaders. if you were to be a fly on the wall, that may be the event to attend this morning. >> absolutely. and then they'll start to make their way toward the capitol. the inaugural ceremony begins at 11:00, with his swearing in at 11:55, followed, of course, by his public address. this will actually be his fourth time taking the oath. he took it sunday at the white house in a quiet ceremony. four years ago, you may remember the oath was botched a bit on the capital steps and supreme court justice john roberts had to redo it at the white house.

>> i lo like how you say it was botched. you don't point a finger of blame to either one. >> not on a day like this. >> james taylor, kelly clarkson will be performing in the celebration. and following a luncheon, the inaugural parade down pennsylvania avenue will kick off today at 2:30 this afternoon. what the president will be facing the next four years, coming up. a lot of people are curious, of course, to see what the first lady will be wearing again today. already she's made a big change, her new bangs getting a lot of attention as well. the president has finally weighed in on that new do. we'll tell you what he thinks about it. he's a smart man. >> yeah, come on. really? like he might say something bad? i don't think so. on a different note, football fans in this area have another reason to be really excited this morning. baltimore ravens headed to the super bowl to take on the san francisco 49ers.

head coaches brothers, john and jim harbaugh, going at each other. first for that as well. >> you just made a lot of friends. >> craters. >> they are calling it the har-bowl, coming up. chief white house correspondent is chuck todd, at the white house. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. savannah was pointing out the president was officially sworn in yesterday. he does a ceremonial swearing in. fourth time matching fdr as president who will have taken the oath four times. here is the reason why there's two swearing ins. the constitution says january 20g9. any time it's fallen on a sunday there's been a decision to hold the public ceremony the next day. it was a precedent started by james monroe. >> i, barack hussein obama, do

solemnly swear. >> that i will execute. >> that i will execute the office of the president of the united states. >> the office of the president of the united states. >> led my chief justice john roberts. >> i did it. >> sasha's comment, a reminder of chief justice roberts' flub four years ago. >> and i will execute the office of the president of the united states faithfully. >> and i will execute -- >> this time around, roberts stuck to the script. vice president biden was also officially sworn in sunday by justice sonia sotomayor. the second inaugural address is expected to echo themes from his first, especially the die advvi politics of washington. but mr. obama's advisers say he will take a more realistic approach. >> while we're going to do all

we can to work with congress and negotiate, we're also going to make sure that the american people are more connected to what's going on here. >> reporter: for the first and second families, a jam packed inauguration weekend, from saturday's national day of service to the first lady's appearance at a children's inaugural ball, to a wreath laying at arlington national ceremony. >> celebrating this incredible nation that we call home. >> reporter: today's address, matt, is going to be focused on uplifting things like democracy, like unity. he isn't going to do a laundry list n just three weeks he has the state of the union. that's the place to do that. >> chuck, i was listening to his 2009 inaugural address on the radio last night. in it, he talked about doing away with petty politics, with divisive politics, showing the american people that their government could work for them again. a lot of those things did not happen in the last four years. do you think he might

acknowledge the shortcomings? >> reporter: i'm told that he is going to try to acknowledge it, but at the same time be a little more realistic. i think one of the phrases being used is pragmatic hope, if you will. it's not the same hope and change, not the same expectations that were set four years ago. some realism, but at the same time realizing that actually the country wants this. we saw it in our own poll, matt, nbc wall street journal poll, the number one message that folks wanted to send, particularly to congress, was work together. >> yeah. >> reporter: compromise. >> chuck todd at the white house. we'll be with you a lot today. thank you very much. nbc's willie geist is here as well. he's along the parade route at the u.s. naval memorial. did nobody tell you that the parade doesn't start for 7 1/2 hours? >> matt, the gates aren't even open yet. the crowds are waiting outside. they don't come in until 7:30. we did get here a little bit early. in terms of that crowd, the department of homeland security

expecting somewhere between 500,000 and 700,000 people this go around. four years ago, there were .8 million people along this route. 500,000 to 700,000, nothing to sniff at. when you compare it to four years ago, quite a bit smaller. i'm about halfway along the 1.2 mile route to travel from the united states capitol to the white house behind me. after the president has coffee with congressional leadership at the white house, he will zip past us here with his motorcade to go up and get inaugurated. at 2:30 eastern time after that lunch, the parade comes this way back toward the white house. we'll see him a couple of times. in terms of weather, matt, about mid 40s is what we're hearing. al will have more on that. not a terribly cold day out here. should be nice. the only time this event was canceled because of weather was in 1985, when it was about 7 degrees, snowy, icy.

ronald reagan decided to stay inside and not hold the parade. today, the weather looks good. it's crisp. the show will go on, matt. >> far cry from that. willie, we'll check in with you during the morning as well. thank you very much. lester holt is also here on capitol hill somewhere behind me. good morning to you. >> reporter: matt, good morning. we have a great view, the platform where the president will be sworn in, 10,000-square-foot platform will be filled with members of the house and senate, supreme court, members of the cabinet along with the diplomatic core and others. the program gets under way about 11:30. it should last about an hour and a half. james taylor, kelly clarkson and beyonce, who will sing the national anthem at the close of the ceremony. chief justice roberts will administer the sceremonial oath the lincoln bible and the travel bible owned by the reverend dr. martin luther king jr., whose

birthday we celebrate today. in that speech worry told the president will talk about the need to seek common ground. after the inauguration, he will retire inside with members of the congressional leadership with a traditional luncheon at statuary hall before taking off the on the parade down pennsylvania avenue. the menu, steam lobster, bison and apple pie for dessert. >> lester, thank you. david axelrod is the president's adviser. good to see you. >> good to see you. >> how would you describe the inaugural speech? >> the first thing to remember is that this is not a partisan day. this is not a day for one man's celebration. this is a national con sechlt cration. this is a national renewal. he will be speaking about values and principles, not so much about programs and prescriptions and set a direction for the country based on the thing that

is unite us. >> inaugural speeches are, by nature, more poetry than prose. he wrote on this day we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, that for far too long have strangled our politics. >> that's why you need two terms. >> nice words. i was going to say, is there any evidence that the dynamic has changed that he described four years ago? >> obviously we've gone through a difficult four years in many different ways. one evidence that things may be changing is that i thenk there's some recognition on the part of the republican party that the strategy of obstruction has been very damaging to them as well as the country. and you saw that in their retreat last week when they decided to pull back from threatening to push us over the cliff on the debt ceiling. >> if you do talk to republicans, they'll tell you this is a president, very confident from his re-election. some might use the word cocky, and that he has become more partisan and more hard nosed.

would you agree with that sae assessment? >> and is it by necessity or choice? >> no, i think he's become -- he's practical. and if the other side is going to take a position that they're going to oppose you on every initiative, you have to seek national support. in a democracy, people push policy forward not the politicians and so that's a lesson that he has drawn from the first term. that said, as far as i can -- as i know, and as i know him, his door is always open to people who are willing to work together to solve problems and one hopes in the next four years there will be a spirit of cooperation. understand we're never going to agree on anything. that's why we have two parties. in order to move the country forward we have to move together. >> david axelrod, always good to see you. >> good to see you, savannah. >> i know you'll be watching. we will have more on the second inauguration, but first natalie morales has a check of the other

top stories. good morning. >> good morning to you. dozens of international hostages are still unaccounted for. nbc's keir simmons has more from london. >> this morning, two of the dead hostage takers are canadian nationals. the report from algerian officials is not confirmed but if true, then this is a wider al qaeda threat. the bloody aftermath of a siege ended by the algerian army. at least 23 hostages killed and over 20 bodies found overnight. this video apparently shows survivors escaping into the desert with terrifying stories. >> you could hear gunfire and machine gunfire. >> reporter: not just machine guns. the extremists had rocket-propelled grenades, mortars, like a small army, a still unknown number of americans among the victims. >> we cannot accept attacks

against our citizens in our interests abroad. >> reporter: recorded, issuing demands for the release of prisoners, the leader of the hostage takers, believed killed. groups aligned to al qaeda, a new threat say western politicians. >> this is a global threat and it will require a global response. it will require a response that is about years, even decades, rather, than months. >> reporter: britain paul morgan fought back when the attack began last year. former french foreign legion soldier was head of security at the plant. he paid with his life. nbc news has learned that it took a long time to plan this attack, targeting westerners, increasingly organized. >> keir simmons in london. thanks so much, keir. overnight a united express

plane veered off the runway, blowing four tires before careening across a taxiway. it didn't strike anything and no one was injured in the incident. battery fire on board a boeing 787 earlier this month, the government probe says the battery had not been overcharged but the fire could have been caused by other issues with the battery's charging components, as the investigation is ongoing. the entire international fleet of boeing's so-called dreamliner has been grounded since last wednesday after a string of issues. it will be a battle of the brothers, as you heard, at the super bowl xl vii. raven's coach john harbaugh goes

head to head with his brother jim. back to matt, savannah and al. >> two very intense coaches. it will be interesting. >> it will be interesting, the sibling rivalry. >> no question. >> mr. roker, no rain to speak of. >> president forecaster in chief. he said it would be warmer this time around than his l the last inaugural. he's correct. the forecast for you, we are expecting plenty of sunshine but there could be clouds later in the day. then snowshowers. temperatures between 33 and 40. afternoon high up to 47. we got a big storm system, clipper system coming across the great lakes bringing lake effect snow around the eastern great lakes. by tomorrow major snowfall setting up for southern new england and coastal new england as well. we're talking snowfall amounts about a foot or more between cleveland and buffalo. from boston to portsmouth,

anywhere from 6 to 9, maybe 12 inches of snow and more heavy snow back through the great lakes. we're going to get to your local forecast. first, this message. good morning. dramatic sunrise on this inauguration day morning. i'm tom kierein live view from the city camera. 33 at reagan national with a light east wind. the winds increase later today. by the time of the swearing-in ceremony, in the low mid 40s.

upper 40s bid mid afternoon. snowshowers this evening. some could produce a dusting. then arctic cold air tuesday into t >> and that's your latest weather. >> al, thank you so much. president obama's second term is technically already under way. the road to get here was not an easy one. >> highs and lows, triumphs and tragedies in the first term, but no one could have predicted exactly how it would all unfold. >> america, i have never been more hopeful. >> hope and change were in the air as barack obama became the 44th president of the united states. >> we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and begin again the work of remaking america. >> in the first 100 days, a flurry of activity with the assembling of a cabinet, new legislation and trips overseas. >> stunning to see just how far the dow has plunged. >> economy on the brink of a

passage of a stimulus bill and bailouts for banks and automakers. >> the typical president has, i think, two or three big problems. we've got seven or eight big problems. >> as he staked his presidency on the passage of health care. >> i'm not the first president to take up this cause, but i am determined to be the last. >> a year-long partisan battle. >> you lie! >> ultimately led to sweeping reform. as the next challenge swells in the south -- >> we're watching the oil spill in the gulf of mexico tonight. >> the president fended off criticism that he wasn't acting fast enough. >> we talk to these folks because they, potentially, have the best answers. >> he made history with supreme court nominations and with the country engaged in two wars, president obama took action. >> it is in our vital national interest to send an additional 30,000 u.s. troops to afghanistan. >> he fired a runaway general and fulfilled a campaign

promise. >> tonight i am announcing that the american combat mission in iraq has ended. >> but back at home, the mid-term elections brought a resounding victory for republicans. >> the american people have sent an unmistakable message to him today. change course. >> is it possible voters can conclude you're still not getting it? >> i'm not recommending for every future president that they take a shellacking like i did last night. >> president obama moved ahead with his domestic agenda. >> this morning i am proud. final law that will bring an end to don't ask, don't tell. >> as he battled republicans over the debt ceiling. >> dealing with the white house is like dealing with a bowl of jell-o. >> can they say yes to anything? >> historic night in may brought the news that americans had been waiting nearly a decade to hear. >> tonight i can report to the american people and to the world that the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden. >> within a year he was back on

the campaign trail. but on the anniversary of 9/11, a deadly terror attack in benghazi. >> make no mistake, justice will be done. >> after a long, tough campaign, americans died to give the president four more years. >> thank you, america! >> the thrill of victory cut short by searing tragedy, the day obama called the worst of his presidency. >> our hearts are broken today. these tragedies must end. >> now at the dawn of his second term, president obama has vowed to tackle the tough issues. >> there are no easy outs. >> despite the challenges that lie ahead. >> we know in our hearts that for the united states of america, the best is yet to com come. >> a long four years, in many ways. what will the next four years hold for president obama? can he overcome the challenges that many two-term presidents have faced? we will get into that.

>> then on a much different note, the president takes perhaps his least controversial stance on an issue in a long time, as he weighs in about his wife's brand new bangs. first this is "today" on nbc.

coming up, we will look ahead to the major issues the president will face in the next four years. >> and then our own jenna bush hager will be here with her own memories of inauguration days past. but first a look at your local news and weather. at table 19, a secret crush turned out to be a mutual attraction.... the westgate cousins went old-school to decide who pays the check... a local book club raved about the cliffhangers in the new crime novel... and some b-f-fs from college joked about looking up old flames on facebook -- all over delicious entrees like our new parmesan crusted steak from our $20 dinner for two. chili's -- more life happens here.

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before you reduce or stop cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. ask your doctor about cymbalta. imagine you with less pain. cymbalta can help. go to cymbalta.com to learn about a free trial offer. >> announcer: you're watching a special edition of new 4s today. the inauguration of president obama. live from capitol hill. >> you are looking live now at the u.s. capitol building as people have started gathering for president obama's inauguration. more than half a million people expected to gather for today's festivities. good morning. >> in the news today most of the public inauguration events won't begin for a few hours. president obama will take the oath of office before noon today. he'll deliver his inaugural address and then he and the first lady will attend a

luncheon after 1:00. then they will take part in the inaugural parade after 2:30 this afternoon. >> expect heavy security along the parade route. that begins near the capitol and runs northwest to the whou. if you are headed that way you will find areases to watch the parade. tickets are available for the stand. >> megan mcgrath has more on the security people are dealing with out there. good morning. >> good morning. you can see behind me the mall is alive with activity. we have people coming down to secure spot ongs the mall to watch the swearing-in. many came early. we started to see people at 3:30 this morning. security is tight. we should mention the area for folks with tickets, so the secured area, those security checkpoints opened at 7:00 a.m. people are starting to make their way to the grounds of the u.s. capitol for the swearing-in. folks coming down to the mall.

many have already started to arrive. reporting live on the national mall, megan mcgrath, news 4, back to you. >> a look at the monday morning forecast next. >> our

good morning. here's the inauguration day forecast. we have temperatures near freezing now. by the time of the swearing-in ceremony between # 11:00 and noon in the low 40s. cloudiness, chance of a flurry and cloudy for the afternoon. climbing into the mid 40s. then late afternoon, low 40s. could get snowshowers tonight that might lay down a brief dusting. then windy and frigid weather tuesday all the way into the weekend. the winds diminish on thursday. could get snow friday. eun and aaron? >> tom, thank you. >> another update in 25 minutes. >> now back to the "today" show after this break. this is a live look and al roke

>> original program from the march on washington where king gave his famous "i have a dream" speech. one of the two bibles that the president will use at today's swearing in ceremony is dr. king's so-called traveling bible. the other is the bible that abraham lincoln was using to be sworn in in 1861. that's a pretty weighty moment there. >> that's right. meanwhile, coming up as well, we'll hear from the president's brother-in-law, craig robinson. he has some surprising things to say about how the first term changed the president and his sister, the first lady. >> and we are going to have the answer that everybody has been asking the question to, what does the president think of mrs. obama's brand new bangs? >> there's only one possible response for him. >> he is a very smart man. there could only be one response. >> there's no upside to criticizing that hairdo, no question. >> diplomatic. andrea mitchell is here with

a look at the second term of president's past. good morning to you. >> good morning to you. welcome to washington sbin august ration day. the president has dined the last two weeks with historians to better understand the curse that befalls many second term presidents. he begins his final four years in office. >> i george walker bush. >> do solemnly swear. >> this i will faithfully execute. >> the office of president of the united states. >> for many of these presidents, taking the oath of office was the high point of their second term. from wars, to national disasters, to impeachment trials. >> i did not have sexual relations with that woman. >> presidents stumble. >> i'm more than familiar about all the literature of presidential overreach in second terms. we are very cautious about that. >> reporter: there is plenty of precedent. fdr, not satisfied with the majority of 334 democrats in the

house and 76 democrats in the senate, tried in 1936 to control the supreme court as well. >> we came up with this idea of packing the court with his own judges, didn't work. caused the senate, which was democratic, to be very angry at him. >> reporter: ronald reagan won re-election in a landslide but have after an ill fated staff switch he spent the next years in the iran-contra scandal. >> i told the american people i did not trade arms for hostages. my heart and best intentions tell me that is true but the facts and the evidence tell me it is not. >> reporter: bill clinton had to overcome personal scandal. >> indeed i did have a relationship with miss lewinsky that was not appropriate. in fact, it was wrong. >> reporter: marred by iraq and katrina. >> brownie, you're doing a heck of a job. >> presidents can also overcome early setbacks, as ronald reagan proved in helping to end the cold war.

>> mr. gorbachev, tear down this wall. >> reporter: president obama told matt last year he has a lot of unfinished business. >> do you deserve a second term? >> i deserve a second term, but we're not done. >> is battle fatigue a factor? >> there can be mistakes made and there can be fatigue that sets in. president obama, from what i've seen, is highly energized at this moment, does want to leave a positive legacy. >> advisers say that the president is focused on guns, immigration, energy policy and, of course, the economy, but knows he has a year to at most 18 months to get things done before he is seen as a lame duck. the white house game plan is to campaign aggressively outside washington in order to keep maximum pressure on congress. matt? >> andrea, thank you very much. joined by a couple of familiar faces in david gregory and tom brokaw as well. good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> his goal has been to get a

second term. mission accomplished now. how high will this president set his goals for the second term? how high should he? >> economic restoration, comes into office amid financial ruin of the country. he understands the public wants to get back to work, wants the country to grow again economically. everything flows from that. that's what we're starting to hear again today. it's four years but much less than that, if you think about that. >> it start with his that, fiscal responsibility, debt and spending. it goes to gn control, immigration, perhaps some action on climate control. that's a very big wish list. what's the chance that he gets a little piece of all of that? >> i don't know whether he will get a piece of all that. at the end of the day, we'll know more after his inaugural speech. my guess is, based on what wooif been told, we'll hear more prose than poetry and a lot of it will be addressed to the middle class because they are the forgotten part of the american economy in the eyes of a lot of democrats especially. my guess is that the big scene for him in the second term,

matt, will be big ideas that unite the country and out the idea that is have divided us the past couple of years. as david is right, you have to restore the economy and everything flows from that. >> you talk about big ideas that unite the country. in the opening of this show i was saying, andrea and david, tom jump in here, they were playing the inaugural address. on this day we put aside petty politics, thon day we put aside the politics of division. we show the people of this country that their government works for them. and yet over these last four years we've seen time and time again those things are firmly entrenched here. >> it's been so toxic that i think the president is betting that the american people, clear in our polls, the people are really fed up with this. and that it will be in the republican party's advantage to play somewhat toward getting something done. you saw that in williamsburg, virginia, with the house caucus last week when paul ryan feared the party and the more radical

elements of the tea party which supported him to some sort of compromise short term, at least, on the debt ceiling. >> was it compromise or just a strategy to move a bigger fight down the road? >> i think it's an indication, a telltale sign about where the republicans are. four years ago, when the president was making that speech, republicans were meeting at night. >> exactly. >> deciding how to defeat him when he won for re-election. they lost that, big time. he had a very robust electoral victory and significant popular vote victory. now the republicans are in disarray, trying to organize their party so they have a future. and they're going to have to deal with the reality of that as well. it is a party that is so broken into a lot of parts on the gop side and there's going to have to be a lot of mending down and more outreach as well. >> couple of key areas. the president has focused on energy independence. people close to him say that could be an unlikely bipartisan legacy for president obama and health care. party line vote, divided the country. implementation will be tough. he will have to spend a lot of

time on it to see results. >> immigration was an area shown to be a place where he might have the most success. >> that's true. >> guns are going to be tough but i think the president also feels that on issues like this, he now can take some chances, even if it's not politically popular, and it's not. he's going for the long ball as well. >> let's save a little bit of what you are have to talk with us. you'll be with us throughout the entire day. >> oh, my god. >> that's true. >> read your e-mails. >> i told you everything i know. >> tom brokaw, david gregory, andrea mitchell. let's get outside and get a check of the weather from al. >> it's going to be a long day. tom's already done. beautiful, beautiful morning as you look at the capital. little the capitol, inaugural weather history. reagan had the warmest inaugural ever. 55 degrees. four years later he had the coldest inaugural ever at 7

degrees at noon. wind chills 10 to 20 degrees below. they cancelled the parade. look at the wind chills. up and air temperatures in the upper plains. minneapolis, 7 below. feels like 25 below. green bay, 3. minot, 8 below and the wind chill is worse. as you look, we're looking at temperatures today in the below zero readings in the plains. 20s in the northeast. by tomorrow, those temperatures, bitter cold air into the midatlantic states all the way down to the south. that's what's going on around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> good morning. i'm tom kierein. here's the sunrise on inauguration day morning. quite a bit of cloudiness. the sun will probably get behind the clouds shortly. 33 at reagan national. east wind around 10 miles per hour. the inauguration in the low 40s at the time of swearing in. by 2:00, 3:00, it could reach

the 40s. tonight, passing snowshowers which could put down a dusting. then frigid air after that. and that's your latest weather. matt? thank you, al. still ahead jenna bush hager will be here to share her memories from her family's inaugurals. but first the first lady's brother opens up about how the white house has changed his sister on this special inauguration day of "today" right after this. ♪ ♪ just add water. the everyday collection. by target.

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welcome back to a special inauguration day of "today." willie geist had a chance to speak with a key member of the presidential family, his brother-in-law, craig robinson. good morning to you. >> good to see you again. craig robinson is the brother of the first lady, brother-in-law of the president of the united states. he is also, by the way, the head basketball coach at oregon state university, flew in from a game in l.a. saturday night, here for the festivities. i got a chance to talk to him about politics and about what happens when your family becomes the first family. >> the first time was such a blur. there was an election. my brother-in-law wins. there's an inauguration. my family moved into the white house and i cannot remember anything from that one.

so i'm hoping this time around, i can soak it in a little bit more. >> your sister has been in this white house for four years. do you feel like it's changed her? >> i think it has, for the better. you would be amazed at the number of people who come up to me, because i have this face and i look like my sister, and they are so excited about what she's doing, what they're doing to help this country. >> do you allow yourself sometimes to sit back, maybe you're at home, on tv seeing your brother-in-law address the nation and say that's the guy i knew 20 years ago, running around our house. could that be the same guy? >> all it be a little bit whiter hair. >> yeah. >> you'll see the president doing what he does on a daily basis, whether it's on television, in the newspaper. it just reminds me of how it's possible in this country for a regular guy to get elected president. >> yuf played a lot of

basketball with the president of the united states. >> uh-huh. >> as a coach, how do you evaluate his game? >> it's easy. he is definitely a team player and never tried to act like he was any different of a player than he normally was. that's a real character trait. >> so, is he a scorer or distributor? >> well, he started out a scorer and as he has gotten older, he has become more of a distributor and shot maker, as we all do. it happens when the legs start to go. >> that's right. that's right. how have sasha and malia handled life in the white house? we've seen them grow up. >> right. they're such gracious girls and involving into very nice young ladies. by the end of this, malia will be heading to college. i mean, it's just unbelievable to me. >> coming from where you came from on the south side of chicago, what is it like to look up and see your sister standing there on the steps of the united states capital as her husband is being sworn in for a second

term? what is that feeling? >> first and foremost, a sense of pride that i'm standing up there, watching my family members. there's a sense of humility. there's a sense of honor. and, above all, there's a sense of family. >> craig robinson will be here, soaking this up, savannah. he did say he has already been watching game tape for his game against washington this week. he is here, but is thinking about basketball back in oregon. savannah? >> he has to multitask a little bit. willie, thanks so much. still ahead, the intense security surrounding this inauguration and what the first lady has done for fashion in this country, right after this. [ woman ] my boyfriend and i were going on vacation, so i used my citi thankyou card to pick up some accessories. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? and with all the points i've been earning, i was able to get us a flight to our favorite climbing spot

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traditionally smaller than the first. that will be the case this year. with tens of thousands expected to party into the wee hours of the morning, this city is getting ready for a party so big they only do it every four years. in just a few hours, the biggest names in d.c. will brush elbows with the brightest stars in hollywood, beyonce, who performed an unforgettable performance, will lend her voice to the swearing in ceremony today. james taylor, who sang his classics on the trail will also perform for the commander in chief. and alicia keys, stevie wonder, to name a few. >> obama has just enhanced that. >> reporter: unprecedented 1.8 million people turned out to celebrate the nation's first african-american president. this year, the crowd is expected

to be about a third of that. and instead of the ten official balls of 2009, there will only be two. but with as many as 40,000 expected, all dressed to the nines, the preparations at the convention center are in full force. at hotels around town, they're getting ready for the nation's biggest party. tell me how you prepare for a weekend like the inauguration. >> this is washington, d.c.'s super bowl. this is our special event. >> reporter: j.w. marriott isn't filled to capacity like 2009, but business is brisk, with the hotel offering an inauguration special, this luxury suite, including a 7,300 square foot terrace, spectacular view of the parade route and unlimited catering. >> the creme de la creme. >> reporter: every inch of the city is bustling. whether it's the first or the second, each inauguration is

historic. >> i think it's probably the most important thing that we can do every four years. to make people believe that we are one country. >> reporter: now i mentioned there are two balls tonight. that's the smallest number since the inauguration of president dwight d. eisenhower. officials tell me they are expecting a comparable number of attendees to what they got back in 2009. matt? >> kristen welker at the white house. thank you very much. we should be seeing the president and first lady in a couple of minutes. >> they'll be head iing off to church. and the honey at the sam. i'm like digging this yogurt thing.t the sam. i feel healthy. new honey bunches of oats greek. pleeeeeeeease... [ female announcer ] betty crocker fruit flavored snacks. pleeeeeeeease... less than 100 calories and made with real fruit pleeeeeeeease... thanks mom! [ female announcer ] betty crocker fruit flavored snacks.

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you're now looking live at the white house right now where the president and first lady will go to a church service lfr before they begin their day and have the swearing in ceremony later this morning. people are gathering on the national mall to witness the presidential inauguration, the second iuguration for president obama. >> more than half a million people expected to take part in that event on the mall behind us in a couple of hours. first of all, good morning, i'm aaron gilchrisgilchrist. >> i'm eun yang. >> this is a view of the national mall. >> some expect major crowds on metro and when you head to the mall. trains are running for 22

straight hours. metro opened at 4:00 a.m. just a reminder, three stations are closed. the smithsonian archives and mount vernon closed today. >> we are getting word that the metro parking lots are starting to fill up. 70% full around the region. if you're driving a car, get there quickly to get into spaces so you're able to hop on a train and work your way into the mall. >> we'll check your forecast when we come back. stay with us.

good morning. near 30 degrees now suburbs and rural areas. right on the mall temperatures in the low 30s. by the time of the swearing-in ceremony late morning around noontime in the upper 30s to low 40s. maybe briefly touching the upper 40s for the parade time. then some snowshowers possible tonight. small chance of that. they could produce a brief dusting if they happen. windy and colder for tomorrow, remainin it's monday morning. it's also the 21st of january, 2013. as you look at the south side of the white house, with the presidential limos parked outside because the first family will be exiting the building shortly. we'll get to see them as they make their way to st. john's church for a prayer service. it's all part of the second inaugural celebration. i'm matt lauer, alongside savannah guthrie, al roker and natalie morales. in about half an hour from now, i guess, is when we'll see the first family for the first time. they'll make that trip across

lafayette park, to st. john's, the church of presidents as it's called. i think since they started services in the 1800s, every person who has held the office of the president has attended a service or more at that church. >> they even have a pew for them, pew 54, if you're taking notes at home. it's a short walk but they'll be driving this morning. then they'll return at the white house at 10:00 this morning. they'll have coffee with members of the congress. and gets under way with the swearing in at 11:55. >> compared to 2009, this inauguration is expected to be smaller. there is, of course, major security here as well. security is predictably tight. we'll talk with a retired secret service agent about the safety measures in place. some you see, of course, and a lot you don't see. >> there's a no-fly zone, 3,000 square miles for small planes. this is not the day to be flying your small plane into this area.

>> absolutely not. somebody who knows a lot about inaugurations, jenna bush hager. she has been to three of them, one for her grandfather and two for her dad. we'll get her take in a couple of minutes. chuck todd is standing by at the parade route. >> we expect the president to get into the limo. it could normally be a short walk to st. john's church, the church of presidents. they will motorcade there. that's what security would rather have. the bigger event and the tone setter will be the speech that the president makes. when you look at recent second term inaugural addresses, the most interesting facet that i found with bush, clinton and with reagan, all of them used their successful messages of re-election in their second inaugural address. for the president, what's that going to mean? talking about things like rebuilding the economy and the middle class but also trying to break the politics of division. so a similar message from that first inaugural.

i'm told, you know, maybe with a little -- a little more realism thrown in, but they do know, for instance, that that is what the public wants to hear, that they want to hear that the president still would like to break the gridlock of washington, savannah. >> chuck, i've also heard it's short. we'll see about that. >> reporter: we'll see. >> chuck todd at the white house this morning. thank you. let's check in with nbc's erica hill along the parade route at pennsylvania avenue at freedom plaza. erica, good morning. >> savannah, good morning to you. we are just blocks from the white house where we are. you can see the capitol behind me. perfect spot to see this parade come by. freedom plaza was actually renamed in honor of dr. martin luther king jr. it takes on special significance, of course, today, which is also mlk day. the president asasaid martin lur king is one of his heroes. you will see that in the parade float, four of them honors

freedom rights and martin luther king. the arc of the moral universe is long but bends toward justice, one of the president's favorite quotes of martin luther king. there is already a heavy police presence behind us. members of the park service is here as well as they prepare for the thousands of people who will be here to watch this parade today. we'll be bringing you that from this very spot throughout the day as we see them come down past here and make their way to the white house. >> all right. erica hill, from her vantage point along the parade route. thank you very much. >> talk about security. i was hearing this morning that some police officers from all around the country have come to washington. they were sworn in yesterday as deputy u.s. marshals. they'll take part in what is a huge security presence here during the inaugural. let's get a check of the morning's -- headlines of the morning from natalie morales, who is right here. >> all right. good morning once again, everyone. notre dame's star linebacker,

manti te'o, has spoken out for the first time since the fake girlfriend hoek was exposed last week. mike taibbi has the story. >> good morning, natalie. the principles in this story are staying as far from the media as possible. te'o saying late friday had nothing to do with the hoax also concedes that his own words and actions didn't help his cause. heisman trophy runner-up remains in florida, preparing for the nfl draft. but manti te'o told espn he was never, ever part of the fake girlfriend hoax. the person te'o said admitted to him this week it was his doing was ronaiah tuiasosopo. t tayo told espn, he now knows that there was no girlfriend that died tragically, lennay

kekua. days after he suspected he had been victimized by a prank still talked about his dead girlfriend at the heisman ceremony in new york. >> i'll never forget the time when i found out that my girlfriend passed away. >> in what he called his biggest regret, te'o told his father and several interviewers he had, in fact, met his girlfriend when he never had. nfl watchers say it may not hurt his status in the upcoming draft. >> there are guys in the nfl who have done far worse than be involved in some online hoax, whatever extent he was or wasn't involved in it. >> reporter: in the end, it's what te'o calls a humiliation and a "saturday night live" punch line. >> she's not a real person. >> oh, right. >> reporter: it's hard to say where the story goes from here. there is no criminal case and nothing in the wind about any potential lawsuits. at the moment it's a yarn about an accomplished and suddenly famous athlete who was played

for a fool and admits that his comments along the way may have made it worse. jessica chastain ruled the weekend box office, her supernatural horror film "mama" took the top spot with $28 million. she also held the second spot with "zero dark thirty." "silver linings playbook" came in third. more fallout for lance armstrong after his on-air confession to oprah. making him explain his doping scheme to piers morgan. >> would you care to elaborate on your sophisticated system of doping? >> it wasn't all that sophisticated, piers. i did steroids, human growth hormone, epo and i replaced all of my blood with better blood. am i sorry i did it? yes-ish.

ps, no. >> this note has gone viral online after being posted in an australian library, announcing that armstrong's books are being moved to the fiction section. could selena gomez be singing a message to ex-boyfriend justin bieber? calling timberlake's "cry me a river" ♪ cry me a river cry me a river cry me a river ♪ >> making it an even loaded song choice, the biebs himself did a cover of the song back in november after his first split with selena. when this woman finds out she's going to be a first-time grandma, she can't quite contain her excitement. check it out. you're having a baby!

oh! >> her daughter revealed she was pregnant by giving her a baby block wrapped up like a present. that is a priceless, priceless expression there. let's go back down to al, who has another check of our weather. hey, al. >> hey, natalie. that was rea you another little inaugural tidbit. we are looking for the forecast today. becoming cloudy. chance of snowshowers late. temperatures will be around 47 as the parade kicks off. all right. we have for you today a clipper coming across the great lakes bringing three to six inches of snow but transferring energy off the coast to bring more heavy snow late tonight into tomorrow into new england. boston could see 6 to 9 inches. air stagnation alerts in the pacific northwest. we have chilly conditions down as the arctic express moves in. all the way into the central

plains and mid mississippi river valley. here's what's happening in your neck of the woodses. >> good morning. i'm tom kierein. it's a cold morning. we are near the freezing mark. nearby suburbs and rural areas. in washington it's in the low 30s. 20s farther west. out of the mountains some locations with snowshowers and flurries now. later today around the metro area praps by sunset into this evening a few passing snowshowers. before then into the upper 40s during the parade. time of the swearing in ceremony should be in the low 40s. >> and that's your latest weather. savannah? >> al, thanks. coming up, much more from washington, including what it's like on the parade route through the eyes a secret service agent, right after this. weight watchers online worked for us. we don't argue much. we really don't. meg usually just gets her way, and i go along with it. i think it worked for matt because i did it for him. when i'm the one cooking, i'm the one calculating the points. i can microwave things.

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we opened up another window on the same computer and started using h&r block's and it was much easier to use. there was no competition. every day i get to work with professional hockey players, and when i do my taxes, i want to work with the professional tax software. we welcome you back to washington, d.c. where security is obviously tight for today's inaugural events. we'll talk to a former secret service agent who served on president obama's detail. but first pete williams has more on the challenges posed by an event of this size and scope. good morning, pete. >> good morning, matt. most heavily secured event in washington. they anticipate a much smaller

turnout but for the secret service the preparation is just as intense. an 11-year veteran of the secret service, dan bunchino, knows what goes into making it safe. >> we think about what you don't have to, chemical attacks, vehicle-born explosives, a fire. you have to make pennsylvania avenue nearly a quadron of washington, d.c. as secure as the white house. >> reporter: before retiring he was in the elite group assigned to product the president. he walked a few steps from barack and michelle obama in the last inauguration. >> reporter: tell me what it's like when you are walking a few steps away from a presidential limousine or president and first lady and looking at all these buildings. what's going through your mind? >> a little bit of fear. it's like riding a motorcycle.

the minute it becomes dangerous is when you're not thinking about it anymore. hands. where is everybody's hands? i can't watch 200,000 hands. but my people are. i'm watching people to make sure they're watching hands and not looking at the parade route. windows, are there any open windows? it's my job to give an umbrella view. every lobby, every window, every floor. it is a massive, massive undertaking. >> reporter: this second obama inaugural is expected to draw nearly half of the nearly 2 million that streamed in to see the inauguration four years ago. a highway tunnel used as a pedestrian access point that became clogged with thousands will be closed this year. officials say they'll have more metal detectors in use and bull bulletins on social media,

hoping to avoid the long lines and maroon ticket holders. >> signage referred to as bread crumb that is literally will take you right to where you need to go and lots of information for us to keep pushing out in the community. that really will be the key. >> reporter: officials say so far they know of no threats to today's ceremonies and they tell me this morning there have been no arrests so far, but they are out in force, hoping to make sure nothing goes wrong. matt? >> pete williams on this story. pete, thank you very much. a former secret service special agent and analyst who worked on president obama's team. evie, nice to see you. >> good morning. >> it's the super bowl for the secret service. >> absolutely. >> when it comes to providing this level of security for this many people, is it the idea to make it as visible as possible or do you somehow want to be in the background to not take away from the pomp and circumstance of the actual event? >> you want to be both. you want to be visible. presence is a deterrence to the

bad guys. but you also want to be invisible because you don't want the bad guys to see you. to do proper security, you want both inside and outside. >> for secret service agents, the mindset has to be that this is the day that something could be tried or this is the day that something could happen. you can never allow yourself to fall into a state of calm. >> no, never. whether he's doing this or going around the corner to get starbucks, an impromptu move, you always have to think like that. complacency will get you hurt. >> as we're hours away from some of the events, take me through. what are the agents thinkging over? >> are the people funneling in appropriately? are people being checked? are people going to be inside on time? are they safe, secure? you're thinking about the route. you're also assessing the environment. are all the players in place?

you're looking at about 40 something law enforcement agencies and it's an orchestra coming together to do a symphony and the secret service is the conductor. >> during the parade, the thrill of thrills for someone along the parade route is when the president and first lady get out of the car and walk. they get to see them. >> yeah. >> they get to get a glimpse of them. that has to be the biggest nightmare for people in your former position. >> yes. of course, you don't want them coming into close proximity with people. you don't know what a person is going to do, even though they've gone through a metal detector. you don't know what their intentions are. >> is that what we think of as a spontaneous moment where the president gets out, actually a carefully, orchestrated event? >> sometimes yes, sometimes no. sometimes we think, okay, we're going to go from point a to point b. and he may do a b-line and go the other way. >> can't the secret service tell him, mr. president, this is where you'll get out of the car and this is where you'll get back in? >> we work together. staff and the secret service work together. he's in touch with the people.

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live shot of the washington monument. we are back with more of our special inauguration day coverage from the nation's capital. this is a big day, not ohm for president obama, but also his family. what will four more years at the white house mean for them in jodi ckantor is author of "the obamas." you wrote an article how the president himself has changed in the past four years. what did you learn? >> he came to washington as a newcomer. now he is a professional. people say there is an all-business quality to the obamas now. the mystery that hung over the first inauguration is gone. we know exactly what he wants to do agendawise. and he is also much -- i love this word -- bloodier minded in terms of beating republicans. >> michelle obama had to borrow a word she used in an interview with me, strategic. she is strategic to what she chooses to take on.

do you think a second term will be more liberating for her? >> her advisers and her are meeting right now -- not at this moment -- but in the past couple of weeks, whether she will do something bigger than what she has done before. on one hand she is very strategic, careful. on the other hand she, i believe, will do something to capitalize on her huge popularity. >> she's surprised at how normal her girls continue to be. they're getting older now. how do you think that fact will play out on how the next four years go for them? >> people in the white house use an unusual word to describe these girls, disciplined. very few kids have been described that way. they've never had an embarrassing moment on a public stage. very rare. i think we'll see them move through their teenage years really the same way they have the past couple of years, with incredible care. >> jodi kantor, always great to

get your perspective. your book is called the obamas. much more on this inauguration morning, including our first look at the first family today. but first on monday morning, inauguration day in washington, d.c. and a live look at the white house. this is "today" on white house. this is "today" on nbc. a live look at the white house. we are waiting for the first family to leave. good morning. i'm eun yang. >> i'm aaron gilchrist. this morning we showed you the crowds on metro. they are arriving at that time mall in droves. >> that's where megan mcgrath is live with the scene there. good morning to you. >> good morning. we are seeing a large crowd now. they are going down the mall as

close to the u.s. capitol as they can get. they don't have tickets but they want to get near one of the jumbotrons to witness the swearing-in. if you look down the street you can see the crowd gathered on the steps of the west wing of the art gallery. so lots of people headed down. back to you? studio. >> ♪ ♪ [ multiple sounds making melodic tune ] ♪ [ male announcer ] at northrop grumman, every innovation, every solution, comes together for a single purpose -- to make the world a safer place. that's the value of performance. northrop grumman.

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back now with more of "today" on this inauguration day. it's monday morning, the 21st of january, 2013. and you're looking at a live shot of st. john's church, a walk across the street, across the park from the white house. we do expect the first family to arrive there in a matter of moments to attend services. it will be their first stop, st.

john's episcopal church. that is a tradition started by fdr. the bidens are expected there as well. we will see them arrive any moment. veteran who met the president during his first white house run and gave him a very special gift. we'll tell you more about that. that is something that the president still holds on to today. the white house just recently learned the man's identity and invited him to today's event. we'll be hearing more about that. you saw jenna bush. we'll talk to her. she has some inauguration memories. she watched her grandfather and her father take the oath of office. so we'll catch up with her as well. >> i think she was just 11 years old the first time when her grandfather took the oath of office. let's check in with nbc's chuck todd. still over by the white house. we should expect to see the president and first lady pretty soon. >> we should. as you guys have noted, st. john's church, church of

presidents. president every once in a while goes there on sunday. yesterday, by the way, he and the first family went to church, predominantly african-american church here in washington, d.c. they worshipped yesterday. he has not been able to worship as much on sundays as he may have thought he was going to. a lot of presidents find it's much harder to do and more disruptive than they realize. a lot of them end up at st. john's -- >> chuck, let me interrupt you. what's happening behind you, i think, on the south side of the white house, we're seeing the presidential limousine and motorcade now pulling away from the building. who knows, they may honk their horn as they go past you in a second. the president and first lady and sasha and malia are on their way to st. john's church. sorry to interrupt you. keep going. >> reporter: no worries. of course, they're driving because of security and because of the parade route. one thing after this service, and what's interesting, i know, you've been talking about the place you want to be more than any other meeting this morning

is the meeting with congressional leaders. normally, in first inaugurals, that's that final meeting between ought outgoing and incoming presidents. this one a little different. with boehner, mcconnell and obama, you would be interested to see if they'll take any business. >> people that have had very public disagreements over key issues in the last several weeks or months alone. you have to wonder what the tone in that room might be. >> reporter: especially with mcconnell. it's never been a warm relationship. the president and mitch mcconnell have had exactly one meeting in the first term, one on one together. and yet mitch mcconnell might be the most important republican on capitol hill. he and vice president biden have a great relationship. >> as we watch these limousines headed to st. john's church, it's a short rooi, we expect the president to get out shortly.

tell us about the inauguration speech. we remember the one four years ago. do you expect it to be a scaled-back speech this time around? >> reporter: realistic hope is probably the way to put it. the public wants -- they do know that while we may be cynical to the message of breaking the g d gridlock and the divisiveness of washington, the speech is not designed for us here in washington. it's designed for the public. and the public is screaming for compromise, screaming for a break in gridlock. so he is still going to talk about those themes. though, as you put it, scaled back with a little more realism. >> all right. chuck, we're starting to see some movement right outside st. john's church. as we know, they call it the church of the presidents and for good reason. so many presidents have attended services on this day, starting with fdr, as we mentioned. there's even a special row, row 54. there is the president of the united states on this official ceremonial day of his swearing

in. and the first lady as well. >> savannah, we learned from the golden globes last week it's not what she's wearing, it's who she's wearing. >> who are you wearing. >> what do we think about this first glimpse of the first lady on this inaugural monday? >> i'm told not too many moments from now we'll be given that all-important information as to what this first lady is wearing, the designer of her clothes as well as the children. i'm also told that the designers themselves don't know. obviously, a lot of eyeballs on the first family as they walk in and greet the pastor, they get ready to sit down to church. >> and the president in that classic navy suit. we've seen that a few times. anyway, as they prepare to go in, i think we have peter alexander who is over at st. john's. peter, i hope you can hear us. give us a sense, if you can, for who else will be in attendance during that service. >> as we watch the first family entering, we saw them sharing an embrace and shaking hands with the reverend, luis leon, also scheduled to offer the ben

addiction during t ediction. we witnessed a lot of close family friends of the obamas arriving here at the church. obamas are the only ones who have gone through the front door, the others arriving through the side. treasury secretary timothy geithner here with his wife a short time ago as well as jack lew who will soon become treasury secretary, assuming he is, of course -- that his confirmation process goes as the president hopes. valerie jarrett, a close family member and close adviser to the president and, frankly, to michelle obama as well arriving. and craig robinson, who you had a chance to speak to a short time ago, michelle obama's brother was here, turned to us, the media and, some of the other crowds that have gathered at the adams hotel to wave. and there's a big cheer as people anticipated their first chance to see this family on this uniquely special day. >> all right. peter, thank you very much. now, by the way, we're looking at the motorcade containing the vice president of the united states, joe biden.

dr. jill biden, his wife, will be with him. and i would imagine -- i would assume their three children heading to this service as well. and we'll see them shortly. >> should mention the reverend, who is delivering the service this morning at st. john's church has a big day ahead of him. he will also do the invocation later today for this ceremony. we're joined in the studio here with doris kearns goodwin, david gregory, moderator of "meet the press" and tom brokaw, who needs no introduction. this is load with pomp and circumstance. what's the importance for the nation to see these events unfold every four years? >> we don't have a king and queen in this country. this is almost like our secular religious day where we invest this person with these extraordinary powers. the great thing still about our

country, you are a private citizen one day, become the president next day, you are finished, you go back and are a private citizen. you don't have all that stuff that you had around you. that's an extraordinary resilience for a democratic system. >> as we prepare to see the vice president, we've spoken about what these next four years will hold for the president. let's talk about these important four years that are unfolding for the vice president, joe biden. is it a feta com plea, in his mind? >> not at all, if hillary clinton -- >> i meep in his mind. >> in his mind. he plays an important role in the first term, will do it again in the second term. the official swearing in, governor of new hampshire, he might have an eye for what happens in 2016. >> talk to us a little bit about joe biden's first four years as vice president. what did we learn about him that we didn't know through all those years in the senate? >> not much about what we didn't

know about him before. he has proven to be a very smart choice on the part of the president. during the so-called grand bargain debate they called on him to go to the hill where he was familiar with everyone on the other side. we saw it again recently after the election, when he got deeply involved in the fiscal cliff negotiations and then picked up the ball on guns. and made it very clear about what they wanted to do and had big ideas about guns. kind of a shared history. it was 1974, when i came, '73 and he came the next year as a young senator from wilmington, delaware. he went through a terrible personal tragedy, losing his wife and a child. when he went to newtown, it was not fake empathy. he really did know what it was like to lose a child. >> there are no cameras inside that church. now they're going to kind of disappear for the next 45 minutes to an hour. we won't see them until they emerge to head back over to the

white house. something else about joe biden, in reading some of the information. you forget that he had a serious health scare of his own back in 1988. >> aneurysm. >> exactly. with all the talk about hillary clinton as of late and the health problems she had, with some people questioning moit that impact her political future should she decide to run for president in 2016, he had that brain aneurysm in 1988, ran for president after that and now is the vice president of the united states. >> you know, what you can get involved in, what happens from four years from now, but with medical technology and what we learned -- we need to know more about all these candidates, medically. they protect all their health records but it turns out john f. kennedy was a lot more ill than people realized he was, for example. it's the kind of thing that you need to know more about, the country deserves to know more about. my favorite inaugural morning story, however, involves ronald reagan, who comes to washington, d.c. elected but with a huge

mandate. inaugural morning, he is asleep in the blair house, getting ready to go. and he's not up yet. and finally mrs. reagan says to one of his aides, go in and get the president. he goes in there and says, mr. president, it's time to go to the hill for you to be sworn in as president and from beneath the covers reagan said meekly, do i have to? >> second thoughts on inaugural morning. >> we have a team of early risers this morning, in both the vice president and president have been seen this morning at church. you three are not going anywhere. stay with us. we want to take a moment and get a check of the weather with mr. roker. good morning again. >> hey, good morning, savannah. beautiful morn let's show you a few little facts about our inaugural weather. wettest inaugural, franklin d. roosevelt. 1.77 inches of rain picked up during the inaugural swearing-in. almost .7.

then the snowiest inaugural, william taft, 9.8 inches of heavy snow, drifting snow, strong winds. almost blizzard-like conditions. clouding up later. 30% chance of afternoon snowshowers. temperatures in the mid 30s to the low 40s. by the afternoon, we're looking for a high of 47 degrees. that's what's going on around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> good morning. right on the mall, temperatures are a little above freezing now. generally in the mid 30s. elsewhere, still below freezing in many locations in the rural areas. it's in the upper 20s to near 30. we have clouds coming through. a mostly cloudy day with highs reaching the mid and upper 40s in washington. elsewhere, highs in the upper 30s and low 40s. windy and cold tonight. maybe some passing snowshowers late afternoon into the evening that could leave a dusting. windy and cold weather tomorrow >> and that's your latest weather. savannah? >> al, thanks. our live coverage of this inauguration day continues here on nbc.

yes, we are waiting for word on what michelle obama is wearing this day. but first this is "today" on nbc.

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conquer dinner. one cut of meat at a time. the everyday collection. by target. welcome back to washington, d.c. that's the first look we've gotten this morning of the president, first lady and first daughters as they got ready to attend church. they are inside st. john's church as we speak on this inauguration day. and we should just mention we now have the information some people are waiting for. the first lady is wearing, we are told, a thom browne coat, j. crew shoes. she has a long route along the parade route this morning. >> kudos to david gregory, who got all that right except the j. crew shoes. every aspect of that right.

let's turn now to jenna bush hager, here with the story of one man whose unlikely gift to the president carried a greater significance than he could ever imagine. good morning to you. >> good morning. sometimes those unexpected moments in life have the largest impact. so much is known about our 44th president, but who is this man who unknowingly inspired him? a chance encounter in an elevator that changed two lives. when in 2008 at hyatt hotel, earl smith, their security director -- >> i love you back. >> -- met the future president. >> the feeling i had just overpowered me. >> reporter: overcome with emotion, he pulled out his most meaningful possession, a war patch he always kept with him. >> senator obama, i want you to have this. i have been carrying this patch for 40 years. i think it will bring you good luck in your journey.

>> reporter: he hoped it would inspire the senator during the heated campaign. >> that patch represented my family, my relatives, my friends and it represented all the people in the united states of america. >> reporter: valerie jarrett, the president's top adviser to president obama didn't know earl's name, but he never forgot his generosity. >> when he wakes up in the morning, it is with people just like earl smith in mind. >> reporter: it wasn't until weeks ago when the washington reporter put the pieces together and found earl. >> the more digging i did, the more interesting it became. and the richer it became. >> reporter: earl's story begins in south texas. his ancestors were slaves and he grew up working in the cotton fields. >> came from a family that was very hard-working people. but there again, that's the definition of american families. >> reporter: in his early 20s,

he was drafted to vietnam. when he returned from war, rebuilding his life wasn't easy. >> a very big struggle, but with being in the hotel industry, i found a home. >> reporter: earl married, had children and live out his dream. but there was one thing he couldn't do. >> i have never been -- one reason why, i couldn't bring myself to go. >> you think you're ready to go now? >> i'm ready to go now. >> reporter: a trip in the making. you thought about this for a long time? >> 40 years. >> reporter: 40 years. a salute to the past, a nod to the future. when valerie jarrett learned earl's memory, she wrote an emotional letter, inviting him to meet the president. earl is attending the swearing in ceremony today and on tuesday he will spend time with president obama at the white

house. pretty great man. >> cool story, jenna. since you're here, we can't help but ask you -- david gregory asked for this, for jenna to share her memories. you had a distinct vantage point. you were just 7 years old when your grandfather was sworn in for the first time. what do you remember? >> i was in the first grade. being so young, there i was, with those bangs. got them before michelle obama. being -- being in the first grade and really seeing history live, you know, it was magical. but also seeing my grandpa, who i loved so much, get what he had worked for his entire life, meant a lot for us. >> you were a little older, you and your sister both a little older as your father took the oath of office. as you watch that day, obviously pride in your family and your father. was there some fear and trepidation as well? >> probably. look at that freshman 15. a little bit. you know, nobody wants to hear

their parents criticized. we were in college. so, of course, that's a selfish time in anyone's life when you're focused on your studies and your life. we were hesitant. i think also we were just -- i remember cry iing, nobody surprised by that but being in tears because this is something that he worked for for so long. >> do you feel that in your moment and you're looking out? this must be something that's a little surreal about that whole experience. >> i had gone to the last three inaugurations. i was telling david that it's pretty amazing to be there with all these had politicians who you have read about and studied and you know and to be standing there with them and look out to this huge crowd. it's living history. and it's not something that many people get to do. >> jenna, i have a really memorable memory, encountering you during the campaign. and your grandfather brought you and your sister over to talk to me about what it was going to be like. and i said you should really just go with the flow and enjoy

it as much as you can. and you looked at me, with that m mischievous smile and said does that mean i can stick out my tongue? >> is that true? >> we know that you have done that. >> we had known to be comforting to jenna. >> i saw david gregory on a run and he was like, jenna, come here! i have to ask you -- >> you wrote a lovely letter to the obama girls before the inauguration last time around. >> we got to show them around the white house, which was fun. we were young, too. we taught them how to slide down the banisters. >> jenna bush hager, always great to have you. thank you. we'll have much more from here in washington in a moment. first this is "today" on nbc.

sources. we now have more information about what the first daughters are wearing. malia is wearing an ensemble by j. crew. >> and sasha is wearing a kate spade coat. we'll have all the information on inauguration things big and small. but first this is "today" on nbc.

back here on this inauguration day and martin luther king's birthday, the reason you're seeing us and not the president, they're in st. john's church, attending a ceremony there. and after that they'll go back to the white house, meeting up with congressional leaders. >> the ceremony on the capital begins at 11:30, with the president's swearing in expected at 11:55 am this morning on the nose. first a check of your local news and weather. in inaugural stage is set. take a look at a live picture from the capitol about three hours from the ceremony. good morning. i'm aaron gilchrist. >> i'm eun yang. d.c. leaders expect up to

700,000 people to attend the ceremony down from initial estimates. >> the gates are now open. smithsonian, archives and mt. vernon stations are closed. >> it's cold out the

good morning. approaching 9:00. mid 30s in washington. later today, may hit the 40s briefly by mid afternoon. passing snowshower or flurries this afternoon and tonight possible. windy andle colder tomorrow. cold weather lasts through the week. how's traffic? >> tracking an accident, i-95 in virginia northbound. this is at the exit for the inner loop of the belt way. two of the right lanes blocked by a crash there. you can get around to the left lane. delays are about a mile. >> thank you.

special edition of "today" on a monday morning. it's inauguration day, january 21st, 2013. we mentioned it's also martin luther king jr. day. you're looking at a live shot of the church of the presidents, st. john's church here in washington where the obamas and bidens and other dignitaries are attending an inauguration morning service, a tradition started by franklin roosevelt. i'm matt lauer along with savannah guthrie, natalie morales and al roker. we got our first look at the obamas and bidens this morning. after church, the president will head back to the white house,

and have a 10:00 coffee with congressional leaders of both parties. and then at 11:55 am the president will take the oath of office, immediately followed by his second inaugural address. >>after lunch inside the capital, the parade makes its way to the white house, with inaugural floats honoring, among others, the president's birth place, hawaii, and the state of illinois. we saw her in her thom browne coat, starting off her husband's second term, though, with a new look. you noticed the bangs. they have been the talk of town the past few days. we'll take a look at her influence over fashion over the past four years. >> i think there's going to be a lot of talk this morning about the size of the crowd here today and comparing it to the size of the crowd that was here back in 2009, something like 1.8 million

people came to washington to witness the first inaugural of this president. they're expecting somewhere between 500,000 and 700,000 this time. and i don't think that should be seen as a lack of enthusiasm. we met some people on the street this morning as we were preparing to do the show. they all seemed to be extremely excited as they made their way over to the mall and the capitol. a lot of people will be making their way through the streets, stopping at the souvenir stand that is have cropped up over the past couple of days. and some of their goods have made their way to our set. >> some of the souvenirs we've seen. >> tote bag, bobblehead and presidential hot sauce, not that it's endorsed by the president. >> an iphone cover. not too bad and signed, sealed and delivered candy bar but back to the drawing board, barack obama is spelled incorrectly. >> ooh. that could be valuable. >> that's worth something. >> b-a-r-a-k.

>> you may not want to eat that chocolate. if they can't make the wrapper correctly, how are they going to make the chocolate correctly? >> we've got the calendar here and then, if you're really collecting souvenirs -- >> you're on a roll, that's good. >> white house toilet paper which, as savannah said, you are on a roll. >> golf balls, nobody uses these things but it's fun to have. peter alexander is outside st. john's church. good morning again. >> reporter: good morning to you, matt. inaugural planners certainly hope that the weather can only hold like this. it is cold, but the sun for the first time is out. we remember the difference just four years ago, the first family arriving here at st. john's church just a short time ago, 8:30 this morning as we saw them for the first time as a family unit. the portrait has change ad a lo since their first arrival here. with more gray in his hair, his

wife with bangs and the girls certainly have sprouted, malia almost as tall as her mom. this is the church he most frequently visits, we're told by those who are inside with the first family today. the president is sitting in the front row, not too far away from the vice president joe biden. there is actually a pew reserved for the president of the united states, pew 54, where he will be sitting today. we're within eye shot of the wit house, probably a two or three football field walk. because of all the security, all the barricades, of course, they took that short drive here. you g not a bad way to do it, if you can. that's the beast, the vehicle that the president took, just a short time ago. it's a pretty good one. and that's the bus tour bus that's passing by as well. you can imagine there are a lot of people coming here to witness this experience as well. we saw the president get here.

we saw the vice president get here. they're in there, enjoying church services. vehicles are all lined up. it was a delicate ballet a few moments ago so they can speedily and efficient move them on to their next destination, which is the white house. >> peter alexander, thank you so much. timing is everything in our business, right? let's check in with lie geist, at the u.s. navy memorial along the parade route. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, savannah. send some of that obama hot sauce our way. some guys on the crew would appreciate it out in this weather. it is warming up. it's a beautiful day, as peter said. we are expecting to see the president in less than two hours make a pass by us, his motorcade, as peter said, will head up to the united states capitol. the real fun begins for the people who have begun to assemble here now as the gates have opened about -- some time after the inauguration, right about early afternoon. and we'll see him come by. we understand he is planning, again, this year, to get out of the car. we don't know how many times or where he will do that.

he did it twice at his previous inauguration. jimmy carter was actually the first to do that back in 1977. to give you an eye of the scope of the security here, we've got state troopers from around the country, including from the utah highway patrol. they were nice enough to share one of their patches with us. just past them, the alabama state highway patrol. there are officers from across the country here to make sure this goes off without a hitch. estimates, as matt said, somewhere between 500,000 and 700,000 people, that's according to homeland security who looks at things like restaurant, hotel reservations and charter buses to get to that number. that's an awful lot of people around this parade route as president obama makes his way down from the capitol back to the white house later this afternoon. guys? >> willie, you mentioned security. if you're anywhere near the parade route and you've gone through screening stations, you will not be allowed to have any

aerosols, ammunition, which is an obvious, animals except for helper dogs, backpacks, bags, bicycles, no structures to hold signs, mace, pepper spray. laser pointers. lot of prohibited items if you're anywhere near the celebration. >> no aerosol or hair spray for you, my friend as you head down the parade route. >> nbc's lester holt is also on the parade route. >> reporter: no mace allowed here either, matt. choirs are beginning to take their seats above the stage here on the west front. i want to quickly show you the official invitation for the ina inauguration, beautiful engraved invitation. on the inside the photo of the president. ace seats, if there are such a thing here, right behind me. the president will make his remarks, come to that red draped archway, take the oath of office at the front of the stage. and that's where he will deliver his inaugural address as well. seated on that stage will be, of

course, members of congress, the president's cabinet, along with cabinet nominees, members of the supreme court, the joint chiefs as well as members of the diplomatic core here in washington, d.c. the whole program is expected to last about an hour and a half. it gets under way at 11:30. of course, the swearing in by chief justice john roberts will be ceremonial. the president took care of the official business of starting his second term the constitutional date of january 20th yesterday at the white house. his remarks, we're told, will talk about the need to bring the country together during some very divided times. and then he will go inside after the speech for a luncheon, traditional luncheon before the inaugural parade up pennsylvania avenue. matt, we'll send it back to you. >> lester, thank you very much. we'll be checking in with you several times over the next several hours. >> let's turn to mr. roker >> nothing horrible. that's good news. we are looking at skies starting to get cloudy later on.

30% chance of snowshowers late. temperatures climb into the 40s as the parade gets going. what we are all looking at as a system comes across the great lakes. lake effect snow developing. late tonight into tomorrow new england under the gun as a separate low pressure system forms to bring a lot of snow to parts of boston, also into coastal new england. we are looking at anywhere from 6 to 12 inches of snow there. another 6 to 12, maybe half a foot, foot and a half of snow back through the eastern great lakes. that's what's going on around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> good morning. partly sunny with temperatures still right on the mall in washington in the mid 30s. suburbs and rural areas beginning to climb into the 30s in virginia. maryland, many locations still hovering near freezing for the inauguration by late morning, early afternoon in the low 40s. mid afternoon, may get into the upper 40s downtown. elsewhere, the low 40s. could get a passing flurry or a

snowshower. mainly this evening. between 6 and 10. could leave a and that's your latest weather. >> al, thank you very much. up next, the first lady's fashion. michelle obama's impact on american style. and we'll be live as the first family leaves church and heads over to the white house for coffee with congressional leaders. that's right after this. weight watchers online worked for us. we don't argue much. we really don't. meg usually just gets her way, and i go along with it. i think it worked for matt because i did it for him. when i'm the one cooking, i'm the one calculating the points. i can microwave things. you get to eat real food. we still get to go out. we're just so much smarter about it. we can keep each other in check. going, "okay, i see you." we've lost about 110 pounds together. it helped our love life. happy wife, happy life, right? right. [ jennifer ] weight watchers online. the power of weight watchers completely online. join for free today. people have been daring them to clean up tough messes. my fans think a paper towel can't handle this. ♪ that is tough when wet. [ peggy ] grab viva and break the rules

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[ clears throat ] [ children laugh ] [ female announcer ] golden, crispy outside. warm and fluffy inside. we are one good-looking family. [ children laugh ] [ female announcer ] eggo waffles. simply delicious. the world is watching today as president obama's second inauguration gets under way. they're watching for substance. let's admit it, they're watching for style, too. first glimpse of the first family this morning. michelle obama is wearing the designer thom browne and a

little correction from the white house. her necklace is from designer kathy wiederman, not her earrings. she does everything right from a fashion perspective or does so much right we forget any wrongs we might see along the way. >> i think what we see is something very personal. she seems to choose clothing and accessories that really speak to her personality instead of trying to figure out how to do this cookie cutter, traditional protocol based first lady style. >> as an outsider, it appears she enjoys style and enjoys picking designers. that she likes this aspect of the job. >> if you do not like style, you would not be wearing a thom browne coat. this is not a designer that you wander into your local mall and find. >> let me ask you about that. i'm no fashionista. i never had heard of that designer. is that somebody who is not well known?

>> he is someone who really came out of the men's wear world. that's where he started. all those guys walking around in shrunken little jackets and high waist trousers, thom browne is responsible for that. he doesn't have a lot of distribution. he does have a collection. but other than that,'s hard to find, very unique. >> a lot of folks will be looking to what she wears to the inaugural ball. her choices there, anything she wears, can really put a designer on the map. >> one of the most interesting things that a retail consultant said to me is you're guaranteed a lot of exposure, but you're not guaranteed success. that's because unlike when she wears j. crew, where you can run out and get that cardigan, for special occasions like this, it's unique. you get that awareness but it's not like you're selling these ball gowns left and right. >> do you have any guesses as to what she might choose for

tonight's ball? >> if i knew, i would be in las vegas right now. but based on what she has worn so far, it feels like it will be a bit more subdued from last time. >> that was a jason wu dress. >> it was the white jason wu dress. >> many designers people didn't know. do you think that's something she takes into account, that ability she has to give somebody a name? is she trying to spread the wealth a little bit to other designers? >> yeah. i think she's very smart in that she hasn't attached her name to one particular design house. and she has also, i think, recognized that the fashion industry is not just about the giant corporations. it's about small business owners. it's about female entrepreneurs. it's about young, immigrant entrepreneurs. and that really comes through on her choices. >> she does seem to try to do a mix of the everyday designers that any of us could have access to, and some of the higher end ones as well. >> absolutely. >> it's always good to have you here. thank you so much.

>> my pleasure. coming up next, small town letter that made a big impression on president obama. what he wrote back right after this. miss, this seat's available. (sighs) this is too good to be true. hi. john stamos. enchanté this is too good to be true. dannon oikos non-fat yogurt... delicious yet healthy. sounds too good to be true. there are things that are too good to be true... such as dannon oikos. thick, creamy, with 0% fat and twice the protein... of regular low-fat yogurt mmm huh. i want an oikos! dannon oikos greek non-fat yogurt... too delicious to be so nutritious. dannon this reduced sodium soup says it may help lower cholesterol, how does it work? you just have to eat it as part of your heart healthy diet. step 1. eat the soup. all those veggies and beans, that's what may help lower your cholesterol and -- well that's easy [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. ♪

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history is a ribbon, always unfurling. history is a journey. as we take our journey we think of those who traveled before us. we stand again at the steps of the symbol of our democracy. where we would have been standing at the steps had it not gotten so-called. now we're standing inside this symbol of our democracy. >> ronald reagan back in 1985. at 73 years of age, delivering his second inaugural address and making reference to the fact that on that day in washington, back in 1985, it was 7 degrees outside, so the proceedings were moved inside the capitol rotunda. take a look at the cwds that are now building just behind us here on the mall. people also gathering along the parade route even though the parade won't start for several hours. but those are just some of the 500,000 to 700,000 people expected in washington this morning for the second inauguration of barack obama. every day, thousands of letters are delivered to the

white house. and every night, the president handwrites responses to just a select few. kevin tibbles has the story of one letter from a tiny town in northern minnesota. >> reporter: wely. seems like winter. below zero windchill. >> reporter: folks here like to joke about living at the end of the road. >> we have all kinds of decrcree ways of making the white season theatrical. >> reporter: fell in love with it 30 years ago, a place to set up his dog sledding business. it's the kind of place where neighbors must rely on one another. he first noticed teenager greg ott when he came in dead last in a local race. >> when i saw later he came through with a warm smile and his own sense of satisfaction that he pulled it off, i figured we could do the same out here. watch out, girl. >> reporter: he decided to pay it forward, hiring ott as a

guide. >> i love it. best job you can have, to be outdoors, doing what you love. >> reporter: founded back in the 1800s as a mining town, rough and tumble sort of place where things don't always come easy. but it's that can-do pioneer spirit that inspired jerry snyder to write to president obam obama. >> can i get about ten stamps? >> reporter: snyder was hoping that the president would respond with a letter that eely could preserve in its time capsule. lo and behold, a letter from the president appeared. >> 50 years from now i hope we can have an economy that allows every young person willing to work hard to thrive and i hope that america remains a shining example of those ideals i believe are universal, signed barack obama. but see, he is not writing just to ely. he is writing to all small towns. >> reporter: dan armstrong, water engineer and father of

three, agrees. >> strikes me that you believe this is more than a town. >> it's my family. >> reporter: when he needed a kidney transplant, people rallied round. something his wife, jennifer, will never forget. >> i had people just come help me clean my home. i had people get my kids to practices. i had people watch my dogs. >> reporter: if you had something to say to the president about your town, what would it be? >> it's not what you take when you leave this world. it's what you leave behind you. >> reporter: now that president obama has touched this town with his letter in true ely fashion, they would all like to give something back. perhaps a day of ice fishing out on the frozen lake. do you think he would like it? >> if we caught fish, yeah. >> reporter: so, mr. president, the invite is out there. just don't forget your woolly socks. for "today," kevin tibbles, nbc news, ely, minnesota. >> probably prompted a lot of people in small towns to pick up the pen and start writing today.

>> the crowds are building on the nation's capitol. president obama, the first family and the bidens are inside st. john's church. we expect that to end any moment. they'll have coffee with congressional leaders. in taste, freshness, and nutrition? it's eb. want to give them more vitamins, omega 3s, and less saturated fat? it's eb. eggland's best eggs. eb's. the only eggs that make better taste and better nutrition... easy. eggland's best eggs. better taste. better nutrition. better eggs. it's eb. has oats that can help lower cholesterol? and it tastes good?

sure does! wow. it's the honey, it makes it taste so... well, would you look at the time... what's the rush? be happy. be healthy. good morning. it's 9:26 on this monday, january 21st inauguration day. i'm pat lawson. here is a look at the national mall where megan mcgrath has been all morning. megan joins us with more on the masses now streaming onto the mall to watch today's swearing-in. megan? >> reporter: the mall is starting to fill up. let me show you a situation right here. the 600 block of the mall off madison here is considered filled to capacity. what they have done is closed the barriers here and so folks trying to get up closer to the

front, closer to the u.s. capitol are being stopped at this location, told to spread out and to view the swearing-in ceremony from this location. again, they are not allowing anyone further up. they say they have reached capacity in that section of the mall. back to you, pat. >> all righty. tom oh has the inauguration day

showers northwest of washington. now in washington, partly sunny. later today, temperatures into the low to mid 40s generally through inauguration. pat? >> thanks, t

back now on this inauguration morning. it's the 21st of january, 2013. we're keeping a close eye on that picture, st. john's church, where currently the obamas and the bidens and several of their closest family and friends are attending the traditional inaugural day morning prayer service. and as soon as the families emerge, we will take you there live. >> it would be embarrassing if they had already gone out the back door with all of us standing and waiting. >> there may be precedence for that. congressional leaders have left the capitol and are head over to the white house. a short drive but all that

security along with them. they, of course, will have coffee with the president. the senators who are in charge of the planning committees for this inauguration and festive activities will be there, along with some of the bipartisan leadership of the senate and house. >> chuck schumer, harry reid, nancy pelosi, eric cantor, and john boehner will be headed over there. first, president obama began with the slogan hope and change. then he got a jolt of washington reality. we'll take a look back at the some times rocky road of the first term. >> we've seen that crowd building, craig. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning. the crowd, indeed, has been growing throughout the morning. say hello. say hello. before you get from the u.s. capital behind me, the less it

is like an inauguration, the more it is like a block party/picnic. folks from texas, buffalo, new york, who have said several times this is far from cold. i do want to -- where are you from? >> from new jersey. >> reporter: from new jersey. first inauguration? >> yes, it is. >> reporter: what brings you out? >> obama all the way. >> reporter: how about you? where are you from? >> trenton, new jersey. >> reporter: oh, this is all jersey here? i should have known by the rowdiness. and where are you guys from? >> atlanta, georgia. >> reporter: from atlanta. sorry about the falcons but welcome to d.c. >> it's all good. thank you. >> reporter: first inauguration? >> yes, sir. >> reporter: what are you first looking forward to? >> being here for history. >> reporter: thank you so much for being here. from florida. good to have you. lots of excited folks here on

the national mall, savannah guthrie, we'll send it back to you and matt. >> they're packed in real tight, keeping warm. craig melvin, thank you very much. let's listen in now behind us. the choir from staten island is performing for the crowd. this is a group that has performed with a lot of talented people. they have sung with the likes of carrie underwood. a huge moment for them. didn't they also perform for the academy awards one year? they actually closed the awards one year. >> quite an accomplished chorus. hard year for the people of staten island. what an honor to be there at this moment in our history. let's take a turn and talk to mr. roker. you are an important man today with the weather forecast. >> the president already said it would be warmer today than it was for his last inaugural. he is correct. inaugural. he's correct. we are expecting temperatures getting up into the 40s.

warmest inaugural was in 1981. ronald reagan, 55 degrees. he also has the distinction of having the coldest inaugural on 1985. it was 7 degrees at noon. they ended up moving the inauguration inside the capitol. wettest was back in 1937. franklin d. roosevelt and the snowiest happened in 1909. william taft getting almost 10 inches of snow. that's what's going an around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> good morning. live picture of the mall. we have sunshine in washington. off to the north and west, the clouds are dark, producing scattered flurries. right now, 35 at reagan national with an east wind around 5 to 10 miles per hour. storm team 4 radar showing flurries in the gray showing north and west of washington. those may be with us off and on into the afternoon. a greater chance of a passing snowshower tonight after we hit the 40s today. much colder with strong winds tomorrow int

>> and that's your latest weather. >> al, thank you. let's check in with peter alexander, who has the prime spot at st. john's church, where we expect the first family to exit at any moment. good morning again. >> reporter: the folks at home have a pretty good spot staring right into the front door of the church. the president and his family should be leaving in just a matter of moments. they allow what they call a pool of reporters to be inside. colleagues are in there, telling us what's taken place over the course of the past 45 minutes. the pastor here referred more specifically to the president during his sermon today as the pastor in chief. he spoke about his visit to newtown, connecticut, when he was able to watch the president really assume that role only a couple of weeks ago and he also spoke about the president being the most powerful person in that room and needs to leverage that power for the benefit of others. this pastor, who has become a friend of the obama family, said mr. president, you have an awfully big room. my prayer to you is to leverage that power for the stewardship

of our nation. as we stand out here, the president will arrive, of course. so will the vice president, along with his family. the next stop will be, as we said, a short drive back across the street basically, crossing just around lafayette park to the white house where they will participate in this congressional coffee that takes place today, congressional leadership will be there as we start to see secret service exiting the church. we anticipate we'll see the president in just a matter of moments. it was remarkable, matt and savannah, to see the security outside this place even before the president arrived. there is pete souza, photographer of the white house. as you see, luis leon, the rector here. we can now see the obama family as they come outside. >> peter, as they do exit the church -- i can hear people cheering in the background -- going back to that point you made where the pastor talked about the president being the pastor in chief, in an article in the times yesterday, they were talking, some friends of the president about how he has changed over these last four

years and they mentioned the wake of the newtown school shooting and they could see in his face the toll of absorbing the nation's traumas and when asked about it, he said this is what i do when you think about newtown, hurricane sandy and military families who have lost loved ones in iraq and afghanistan, it is a major part of this job and it's not an easy part of it. >> reporter: i think that's exactly right. you see the president and first lady as they get into, again, what we call the beast. just across from us, the adams hotel. on the roof of the hotel some staff members are up there. that's who the president was waving to, everyone trying to crane to get the best opportunity they can to see what's taking place there. we pan the camera back around and you can see the vice president waving to individuals alongside his wife, dr. jill biden. they will head over to the white house again today. there's a thumb's up from vice

president joe biden as he looks up to the individuals watching here as well. really struck by this moment as you see, the vehicles out front. this is a tradition that has dated back for decades, of course. president obama attending church here far less often than some of his predecessors only a short distance away. we see jim messina. without him, this may not have taken place. he was the campaign manager for the obama re-election campaign. his role as significant as anybody, perhaps, in helping to make this day a reality for those who supported the president over the course of the last year. messina will now be running that vast array of names, list of names and supporters that the president has been able to take advantage of as they try to use that lift to help pursue some of his initiatives including an effort to pursue gun control in the weeks and months ahead. matt? >> as we take a look here, we now know that this inauguration day is under way in earnest. vehicles departing from the

white house where they'll have a quick coffee with the bipartisan leadership as well as the lead organizers on this day with senator schumer. as you said, no question this job changes a person. having been president now for four years. >> they talk about the change that some close advisers and friends have seen of president obama, in the article it talks about the man who wanted to change the nature of washington now actually warns job candidates that it's hard to get anything done there. so, that's kind of a rude awakening that tom and david and doris talked about a little while ago. you come to this town for your first inaugural and you're fill ed with this hope and idealism and, unfortunately, there is a lot of reality that takes hold very quickly in this job and in this city. >> in some ways, washington itself is that immovable object, the president going to have

coffee with the congressional leaders with both parties, a moment of bipartisanship, symbol of bipartisanship, yet the reality of bipartisanship all too rare in these last four years as washington has changed quite a bit. >> the american people want partisanship. they're tired of the gridlock and the fighting. >> and yet in a couple of weeksl roll up their sleeves, take the gloves off, talking about things like passing a budget, then they'll have to deal with gun control, climate. if the four years is any indication, it won't be smooth sailing. >> i've covered the white house, used to talking to both sides, the distrust that exists in both parties, in my opinion, has never been higher when you talk about the same set of circumstances, negotiation, for example, over the fiscal cliff, to hear each side tell it, they tell such a widely divergent

story of what happened, exemplifying how divided these two sides are. >> and there are fractures within the parties as well. john boehner and eric cantor went in separate directions over the fiscal cliff debate. probably some in the democratic party as well. and the two sides haven't done well. here come the bidens up the front steps of the white house. joe biden and dr. jill biden. >> that's an entrance these folks don't use very often, ceremonial front door of the white house. usually they're shuffled into the west side of the white house. this is a day about ceremony and pomp and circumstance and so they're entering through the front door for this coffee. it's expected to last about 15 minutes. i don't think there will be an omelette bar. it's a short one. >> because we have just seen the re-election of the president, these moments unfolding at the

white house are not as dramatic as the circumstances would be if we were to have a new president coming in where that president that's about to be sworn in comes to greet the sitting president. it's always an emotional moment. here is president obama, malia, sasha and mrs. obama in the background there. and this will be the last time we see them -- and mrs. robinson. >> who has been such a key to have this first family adjust to this new life. as we understand it, she will continue to live in the white house, taking care of the girls and is a big part of how they've been growing up under this intense light. >> many people wondered how long that would last. immediately his mother-in-law was in the residence with them. it seems to be working quite well. pete souza, white house photographer in the background. let's get to andrea mitchell on hill right now. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning again to you.

this is a panorama. these are the greatest seats where governors and senators will be seated. they will be escorted in a little bit. we'll be talking to some of them from their vantage point and you'll see democrats and republicans. if you pan out a little bit, you'll see well-known republican strategist standing next to me. four years ago, frank, you helped lead a group of republicans who were strategizing, including cantor, all the house leaders, strategizing on how to stop barack obama from achieving his goals. was that a signal of the obstructionism and partisanship that we experienced? >> this is really surreal that i would be standing next to you. i hope we don't lose the contract because of it. republicans did gather four years ago but it was kind of irrelevant. they lost the house, the senate, the white house. they lost everything. and they gathered that night because they had no place to go.

they wanted to know at that point, what should they do. and it was not an issue of standing against the president. it was an issue of why did they still matter and how do you get 46% of americans represented in washington. >> okay. frank luntz, thank you very much. i know the president will be speaking about bipartisanship. it's a different agenda. it's a second term. he only has a year, year and a half before people say he will be a lame duck. he has big goals. savannah? >> andrea mitchell, we'll see those seats fill up very quickly behind you. check back with you a little bit later on. >> we're back with much more on this exciting morning in washington and across the country, right after this. ♪ ♪

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being elected the second time. this could make his segd term more important than the first if he does it right. >> i still look for this inaugural address to be a road map for action in the second term. where the president overcome atmospherics of this town, which very tough, and budget issues. >> this is surely one of the moments in a presidency. do you expect it to be more prose? >> we'll hear more in the state of the union address. as he takes this new campaign across the country, the message to the country is find a way to work together. >> david, doris, thank you very much. >> and we will be back right after this. go! go olive garden's three course italian dinner. it's back for just $12.95. featuring 5 delicious new entrees to choose from. go creamy and dig into rich new penne di mare with shrimp. or maybe go crunchy with new parmesan potato crusted chicken.

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here in washington, d.c. as we get ready toin august rate president obama. he, of course, is back at the white house, where in a few moments he will hold a reception with congressional leaders of both parties and then will head to the capitol for the day's events. >> he will be sworn in for the second time in two days, fourth time in four years, at 11:55 on the east coast. we're back from washington in a moment. this is "today" on nbc.

back now from capitol hill. we want to mention that brian williams is here. he will pick up nbc's special coverage of the inauguration of president obama in a moment and take you through this historic day. >> lots to get to. lots ahead. stick with nbc. first on a monday morning, a check of your local news and weather.

good morning. it's 9:57 on this monday, january 21st inauguration day. the stage is set, the festivities will get under way in just about an hour. at the capitol, julie is live with this story this morning.

good morning. [ no audio ] >> reporter: -- as the time of the swearing-in ceremony ends. you can see below me the marine band has taken their positions. you may be able to hear the lee university choir singing choruses, coming to sing for the many people who have taken their ticketed seats for the front row view of this important event at 11:30. back to you. >> thanks, julie. tom has the inauguration day forecast. tom? >> right now it's still cold around the washington metro area. temperatures are now in the mid and upper 30s. reagan national at 38. ought to be in the low 40s at